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Coalition for Affordable Drugs IV LLC – Exhibit 1019
`
`

`

`U.S. Application No. 13/340,522
`Response to Final Office Action mailed November 1, 2013
`Page 2 of 8
`
`Attorney Docket No. 25922-819.301
`
`AMENDMENTS TO THE CLAIMS
`
`LISTING OF THE CLAIMS:
`
`131.
`
`(Currently Amended) A method for treating mantle cell lymphoma a relapsed or
`
`refractory hematological malignancy in an individual who has already received at least one prior
`
`therapy for mantle cell lymphoma comprising administering to the individual once per day
`
`between about 420 mg to about 840 mg of an oral dose of a therapeutically effective amount of
`
`an inhibitor of Bruton' s tyrosine kinase (Btk) having the structure:
`
`132.-149. (Cancelled)
`
`150.
`
`(New) The method of claim 131, wherein the once per day oral dose is about 560 mg.
`
`-2-
`
`

`

`U.S. Application No. 13/340,522
`Response to Final Office Action mailed November 1, 2013
`Page 3 of 8
`
`REMARKS
`
`Attorney Docket No. 25922-819.301
`
`Claims 131 and 150 are currently pending. Applicants have herein amended Claim 131
`
`and added new Claim 150, which depends from Claim 131. Claims 132-149 are cancelled herein.
`
`Support for the claim amendments can be found throughout the specification and claims as
`
`originally filed, such as, for example paragraphs [0005], [00194] and [00195], and claims 62 and
`
`65 as originally filed. No new matter has been added. Applicants reserve the right to pursue any
`
`withdrawn or cancelled subject matter, or no longer claimed or as-yet unclaimed subject matter,
`
`in this or a related application. Applicants respectfully request reconsideration of the claims as
`
`amended in view of the following arguments.
`
`I. Examiner Interview
`
`Applicants thank the Examiner for the telephone conference of December 2, 2013, during
`
`which the currently pending rejections and claims of the instant application were discussed. In
`
`view of this discussion, Applicants submit herein amendments to the claims and Response to the
`
`Final Office Action mailed November 1, 2013.
`
`II. Rejection of the claims under 35 U.S.C. § 103
`
`Claims 131, 132, 134-140, 144, 146-149 are rejected under 35 U.S.C. § 103(a) as being
`
`unpatentable over Honigberg, et al. (US 2008/0076921, already of record) in view of
`
`PRNewswire (Dec 2009) and Poll yea et al. (Poster Abstracts, Dec. 3, 2009, 51 st ASH Annual
`
`Meeting and Exposition) and further view of Hiddeman, et al. (Seminars in Oncology, 30, 1, 2,
`
`Feb 2003, p 16-20).
`
`The rejection is moot with respect to claims 132, 134-140, 144, and 146-149, which are
`
`cancelled herein.
`
`Applicants respectfully traverse the rejection with respect to claim 131.
`
`A. Relevant Law
`
`It is the burden of the Office to establish that the claimed subject matter is prima facie
`
`obvious. MPEP §§ 2141, 2142. To meet this burden, the Office must present prior art references
`
`that teach, suggest, or otherwise provide a reason for all the claim limitations. In re Wilson, 424
`
`F.2d 1382, 1385 (CCPA 1970); MPEP § 2143.03. Moreover, the teaching to make the claimed
`
`combination and a reasonable expectation of success must both be found in the prior art and not
`
`based on the applicant's disclosure. In re Vaeck, 947 F.2d 488, 493 (Fed. Cir. 1991).
`
`-3-
`
`

`

`U.S. Application No. 13/340,522
`Response to Final Office Action mailed November 1, 2013
`Page 4 of 8
`
`Attorney Docket No. 25922-819.301
`
`The Supreme Court instructs, "a patent composed of several elements is not proved
`
`obvious merely by demonstrating that each of its elements was, independently, known in the
`
`prior art." KSR Int'l Co. v. Teleflex, Inc., 550 U.S. 398, 418 (2007); see also MPEP § 2143.01.
`
`Rather, to establish a prima facie case of obviousness, basic criteria must be met. The prior art
`
`references or the combination of the prior art references with the knowledge of an ordinary
`
`artisan, must suggest all of the claim limitations. See, e.g., Dann v. Johnston, 425 U.S. 219, 230
`
`(1976). Moreover, there must be some predictability allowing a reasonable expectation of
`
`success in making the combination. See, e.g., PharmaStem Therapeutics, Inc. v. ViaCell, Inc.,
`
`491F.3d1342, 1360 (Fed. Cir. 2007) (citing KSR, 550 U.S. at 416); MPEP § 2143.02.
`
`Importantly, "rejections on obviousness cannot be sustained by mere conclusory statements;
`
`instead, there must be some articulated reasoning with some rational underpinning to support the
`
`legal conclusion of obviousness." KSR, 550 U.S. at 418 (quoting In re Kahn, 441F.3d977, 988
`
`(Fed. Cir. 2006)).
`
`B. Rejected Claims
`
`Claim 1 recites:
`
`A method for treating mantle cell lymphoma in an individual who has already
`received at least one prior therapy for mantle cell lymphoma comprising
`administering to the individual once per day between about 420 mg to about 840
`mg of an oral dose of an inhibitor of Bruton' s tyrosine kinase (Btk) having the
`structure:
`
`Claim 150 depends from claim 1 and thus requires all limitations of the base claim. Claim
`
`150 specifies that the Btk inhibitor is administered once per day oral dose is about 560 mg.
`
`C. None of the cited references either alone or in combination teaches or suggests
`claimed method.
`
`Applicants respectfully submit that none of the cited references either alone or in
`
`combination teaches or suggests every element of the method as claimed. Specifically, none of
`
`-4-
`
`

`

`U.S. Application No. 13/340,522
`Response to Final Office Action mailed November 1, 2013
`Page 5 of 8
`
`Attorney Docket No. 25922-819.301
`
`the cited references either alone or in combination teaches or suggests a method for treating
`
`mantle cell lymphoma in an individual who has already received at least one prior therapy for
`
`mantle cell lymphoma comprising administering to the individual once per day between about
`
`420 mg to about 840 mg of an oral dose of ibrutinib.
`
`Relapsed or refractory MCL is a difficult disease to treat. In the attached article, Howard
`
`describes mantle cell lymphoma as "incurable with standard therapeutic techniques and also has
`
`an aggressive natural history that places it on par with the more aggressive forms of NHL"
`
`(Howard, 0. "Mantle Cell Lymphoma," Malignant Lymphomas Ed. Grossbard, ML, London: BC
`
`Decker Inc 2002 135-151, 135). Howard also states that "mantle cell lymphoma is an insidious
`
`disease characterized by the aggressive natural history of the intermediate/high grade NHLs yet
`
`possessing the resistance to therapy of the low-grade NHLs (page 147). Thus, MCL has the
`
`worst properties of both the indolent and aggressive NHLs. The average survival rates of patients
`
`with MCL are low (see Table 9-1 of Howard). In addition, Howard states that "there is no clear
`
`evidence that standard dose chemotherapy regimens result in long-term DPS for patients with
`
`MCL."
`
`In contrast to then existing therapies for relapsed/refractory MCL, treatment of
`
`relapsed/refractory MCL with ibrutinib resulted in an overall response rate of 68 percent with 21
`
`percent of patients achieving a complete response and 47% achieving a partial response in a
`
`phase II trial (see attached Science Daily article entitled "Drug shows surprising efficacy as
`
`treatment for Chronic Leukemia, Mantle Cell Lymphoma, Science Daily,
`
`http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/06/ 130619195217; see also Byrd et al. NEJM, 2013
`
`Aug 8;369(6):507-16). The estimated survival of the patients was high at 58% at 18 months. The
`
`response rate is considered remarkable given that that prior treatments for R/R MCL had only a
`
`30% response rate. Such results are not taught or suggested by the cited art.
`
`In view of these remarkable clinical results achieved, the FDA recently granted ibrutinib
`
`rare breakthrough status designation. Such designation requires preliminary clinical evidence
`
`that indicates that the drug may demonstrate substantial improvement over existing therapies.
`
`That ibrutinib demonstrates substantial improvement over existing therapies is not taught or
`
`suggested by the cited art. Such results are unexpected.
`
`-5-
`
`

`

`U.S. Application No. 13/340,522
`Response to Final Office Action mailed November 1, 2013
`Page 6 of 8
`
`Attorney Docket No. 25922-819.301
`
`In summary, none of the cited references either alone or in combination teaches or
`
`suggests each element of the method as claimed. Accordingly, Applicants respectfully request
`
`withdrawal of the rejection in view of the arguments presented herein.
`
`III. Obviousness-type Double Patenting
`
`A. U.S. Application No. 13/153,291(page16 of the Office Action)
`
`The Examiner provisionally rejected claims 131, 132, 134-140, 143, 144, 146-149 on the
`
`ground of nonstatutory obviousness-type double patenting as being unpatentable over claims 1,
`
`16, and 17 of co-pending U.S. Application No. 13/153,291 (Attorney Docket No. 25922-
`
`817.201) in view of PRNewswire (Dec 2009) and Pollyea, et al. (Poster Abstracts, Dec. 3, 2009,
`
`51 st ASH Annual Meeting and Exposition) and further in view of Hiddeman, et al. (Seminars in
`
`Oncology, 30, 1, 2, Feb 2003, p 16-20). Applicants respectfully submit that the instant claims are
`
`directed to a method for treating mantle cell lymphoma (MCL), while the claims of co-pending
`
`U.S. Application No. 13/153,291 are directed to a method for treating diffuse large B-cell
`
`lymphoma, activated B cell-like subtype (ABC-DLBCL). MCL is a cancer that is distinct from
`
`ABC-DLBCL. Because the claims are directed to two different types of cancer, Applicants
`
`respectfully submit that no issue of obviousness-type double patenting exists.
`
`Applicants respectfully request withdrawal of the rejection of the claims of the instant
`
`application over the claims co-pending U.S. Application No. 13/153,291 for obviousness-type
`
`double patenting.
`
`B. U.S. Application No. 13/153,317 (page 20 of the Office Action)
`
`The Examiner provisionally rejected claims 131, 132, 134-139, and 145-149 on the
`
`ground of nonstatutory obviousness-type double patenting as being unpatentable over claims 1,
`
`2, 5-7, 15, 24, 25, 29, 30, 33, 34, 36, 37, 48-58 of co-pending U.S. Application No. 13/153,317
`
`(Attorney Docket No. 25922-819.201). Although applicants disagree with the above assertion,
`
`in order to move the instant case forward, applicants herewith submit a terminal disclaimer of the
`
`instant application over co-pending U.S. Application No. 13/153,317.
`
`C. U.S. Application No. 13/747,319 (page 21 of the Office Action)
`
`The Examiner provisionally rejected claims 131, 132, 134-139, 144 and 146-149 on the
`
`ground of nonstatutory obviousness-type double patenting as being unpatentable over claims
`
`130, 131, 134, 145, 147, 150 and 151 of co-pending U.S. Application No. 13/747,319 (Attorney
`
`Docket No. 25922-819.304). Although applicants disagree with the above assertion, in order to
`
`-6-
`
`

`

`U.S. Application No. 13/340,522
`Response to Final Office Action mailed November 1, 2013
`Page 7 of 8
`
`Attorney Docket No. 25922-819.301
`
`move the instant case forward, applicants herewith submit a terminal disclaimer of the instant
`
`application over co-pending U.S. Application No. 13/747,319.
`
`D. U.S. Application No. "13/736,812" (page 23 of the Office Action)
`
`On page 23 of the Office Action, the Examiner provisionally rejected claims 131, 132,
`
`134-140, 143, 144, and 146-149 on the ground of nonstatutory obviousness-type double
`
`patenting as being unpatentable over claims 130, 131, 133, 134, 145, 147, 150 and 151 of co(cid:173)
`
`pending U.S. Application No. "13/747,319". The Examiner states that that claims are directed to
`
`treatment of an individual having received at least two anticancer agents prior to administration
`
`of the irreversible Btk inhibitor. From this description, it appears that the Examiner intended to
`
`cite U.S. Application No. 13/736,812 (Attorney Docket No. 25922-819.303), not U.S.
`
`Application No. 13/747,319, which already was cited on page 21 of the Office Action. Although
`
`applicants disagree with the above assertion, in order to move the instant case forward,
`
`Applicants herewith submit a terminal disclaimer of the instant application over co-pending U.S.
`
`Application No. 13/736,812.
`
`-7-
`
`

`

`U.S. Application No. 13/340,522
`Response to Final Office Action mailed November 1, 2013
`Page 8 of 8
`
`Attorney Docket No. 25922-819.301
`
`CONCLUSION
`
`Applicants respectfully solicit the Examiner to expedite prosecution of this patent
`
`application to issuance. Should the Examiner have any questions, the Examiner is encouraged to
`
`telephone the undersigned at (858) 350-2300. The Commissioner is hereby authorized to charge
`
`any additional fees that may be required, or credit any overpayment to Deposit Account No. 23-
`
`2415 (Attorney Docket No. 25922-819.301).
`
`Respectfully submitted,
`
`WILSON SONSINI GOODRICH & ROSATI
`Professional Corporation
`
`By /Michael Hostetler/
`Michael J. Hostetler, Ph.D.
`Reg. No. 47,664
`
`Date: December 17, 2013
`
`650 Page Mill Road
`Palo Alto, CA 94304
`(858) 350-2300
`Customer No. 116469
`
`-8-
`
`

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